Why the Gen Z stare has every generation talking
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Some Gen Zers have tried to defend their age group, arguing they glare when they're listening to
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So what makes a stare a Gen Z stare? It's a blank look where a response is reasonably warranted. Think of the way Sydney Sweeney and Brittany O'Grady's characters in 'The White Lotus' silently looked
from their pool chairs as Alexandra Daddario's character asked them questions.
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'Me personally, I would never give the Gen Z stare because I'm the type to ask really dumb questions unintentionally, whether I'd be super tired or the menu could be right there and I don't see it.'
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At other points, Alarcon said she's gotten the glare when trying to order food with young workers.
'Sometimes, it gets to a point where I kind of feel uncomfortable, so I just leave,' she said. 'Or if there's a self-order thing, I prefer to do that.'
Jarrod Benson, a 33-year-old Orlando content creator who makes videos poking fun at generational idiosyncrasies, believes a 'perfect storm' of Gen Z constantly being on social media and the physical isolation from the pandemic led to a socially awkward generation. Benson said he once had a waiter not say a word while his table ordered food, instead just looking at each person.
'It's like they're always watching a video, and they don't feel like the need to respond,' he said. 'Small talk is painful. We know this. But we do it because it's socially acceptable and almost socially required, right? But they won't do it.'
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Benson says he's guilty of the millennial pause — when it takes a second or two to start talking at the beginning of a video — and sometimes forgets to edit it out after he's filmed a video on his phone.
Then there's the comparison to
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At the end of the day, it's all in good fun. Benson says he's gotten kind messages from people of all ages as he reenacts their signature quirks. As every cohort gets older, each takes on more habits the other generations can cringe and laugh about.
Still, as more young people enter the workforce, he said, 'Gen Alpha is going to be terrible.'
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